My 3 tips to game design!

News & General Discussion
1

as a player for years, and dev for a few weeks, these are my tips to making a good game.

  1. Make player actions and ignoring dialogue have different results, E.G: (guy) your target is on the left, BANG he is my son. you are to protect him at all costs. This would lead not to a loss, but an achievement named “shoulda let him talk” or something along those lines.

  2. Secrets: I have a year of experience creating in rec room, I know how to execute a secret. A secret should always be seen but mostly ignored, like a random stack of boxes. Secrets reward those who are exploring more than the average player.

  3. Endings: A very good example of multiple endings is Call of Duty: Cold War, where it lets you decide if you want to be loyal, but kill millions (good-ish) or save millions, betray your leader and get killed. (bad-ish) Both endings are equal, but it depends on your morals to end the story.

2

Thank you. You value these the most? I like #2.

#2 has been on my mind for replay-ability.

3

Yeah, having secrets in a game is a good one. Because in most cases, if the game is fun and has secrets, it does make the the game replayable, and more enjoyable.

4

I do indeed value such little things a lot! It’s really what makes a game a game. the little things devs hide for players to go and find are always something you put in after making a map.

1 Like
5

Yeah, I also like 2# because I personally like games with secrets. It makes the game more interesting to play.

1 Like
6

#2 , specially the “seen/unseen” part is one of those little features that makes your game become a hit.

Here are my two cents:

#1 Use the 3-5-7 Rule for making decissions, answering early questions like “How may [things] should i put here?”. Just replace things by anything, like types of enemies, behaviors, mechanics, and so on… If it works with 3, try 5 of those…

#2 Mechanic-First principle. Design mechanics in a modular way, so you could make any property work on almost any element in your game. My best take on this is the Kirby series’ Mimic ability. Even Mario Odyssey learned from that!

“Make a simple crate behaving like it’s a Megaman boss and everybody will laugh…”

#3 Challenge-Explore-Reward tri-cycle. Zelda series does this a lot. Challenges can be locked doors, or mastering certain Gameplay, etc, and so Rewards, iex. getting a new ability, item , or mastering a new way of defeating enemies, reaching far platforms, etc.

Best techniques I learnt on GameDesign came all from indie devs at GameJams events.

1 Like
7

agreeable.

8

This is amazing, agree with everything . . . :slight_smile: :eyes:

9

very agreeable.

10

It took me about three or four months to get my first job there with a Japanese game company called Capcom
papa’s games

11

think what also saying is that . . .

  1. dialogue // NPC - interactions should have different results, and consequences

  2. secrets, or extra-content should be there, or perhaps more stuff than needed to finish the game

  3. several endings, or player-choice-rewards is important to have in video - games

have to say, these are things also see as important, though some devs also simply make games like for mobile, small puzzle - games, or the stuff, and those are also quite succesful, important over electronic // interactive culture, anyway as someone that mostly tells stories, make detailed, or serious character - design, or then design ’ settings ', one could say almost the same as the ’ Matrix ’ , Dungeons and Dragons ', or ’ Star Wars ’ are also settings, then these things are also important to me, and think very important elements, or design - decisions when making a video - game, interactive fiction, or culture . . . :slight_smile: :hushed:

also think these are important questions to ask, at least if one wants to find what ’ genre ’ of developer one is, or where one’s passion, or also interests lie in making any video - game, sounds like the OP is perhaps a more, or less the classic RPG - developer, or that these kinds of elements, or game - play tropes have been found in more story - driven, or perhaps a few strategy - games, think it’s important to think bit over what one’s favorite genre of game - stuff is, and then perhaps decide what to make after figuring those stuff, or to find one’s ’ niche ', or more preferred-content, think it’s important to ask these questions, think before one just starts making stuff, and perhaps one could also make a list of favorite video - games ever, to also help understand what one wants to make // ideas for art - style, features, or various setting - tropes . . . .

1906×800 159 KB

what kind of video - games do you like, do you have a favorite genre, or prior skills, all these things are important to know, and perhaps also get bit criticism, or then advice over before starting to make anything, it’s also a good place to get bit help over what to learn, tutorials that are among better - youtube, and sort - of figuring where // how it makes sense to work, or learn stuff as a beginner // indie - dev, etc etc . . . .

12

The idea of having actions (or the lack thereof) leading to unique outcomes like achievements is genius. It adds so much depth and replayability. And who doesn’t love unearthing secrets in games? It rewards curiosity in the best way. Your take on endings really hits home too. Making them morally ambiguous adds such a personal touch to the experience.

14

I really agree with your tips, especially about player actions and secrets. Letting player choices lead to different results makes the game more interesting and fun to play again. Secrets, like the hidden boxes, are great because they reward players who explore more. Multiple endings that aren’t just good or bad make the story more exciting too. Thanks for sharing these ideas.

1 Like